Exploring India’s First Underwater Metro Rail Ride & Accessibility Walk with West Bengal Local Guides
Kolkata, West Bengal, India (কলকাতা, পশ্চিমবঙ্গ, ভারত)
(March 15, 2024 - মার্চ ১৫, ২০২৪)
On 24 October 1984, the first ever commercial metro rail ride of India took place when a yellow non-AC metro rail rake traveled from Esplanade station to Bhawanipore station in Kolkata with some lucky passengers on board, who still cherish their memories from that special day. It was a historic day when dreams came true as the residents in this part of the country could travel beneath the surface of the city and cover great distances within a very short time, revolutionizing the transport system of this part of the city totally. While this route, later extended till Dakshineswar station to the north, and towards New Garia station to the south, connected the central stretch of the city vertically, there was still a need to connect the city horizontally between Howrah to the east and Salt Lake to the west. This has been a stretch that is also separated by the holy river Ganga flowing between the cities Kolkata and Howrah. While the first proposal of building an underwater metro railway tunnel under this river came from a British engineer William Dalrymple-Hay back in 1921 during the imperial British rule, it was ultimately not implemented due to lack of funds and lack of intent from the foreign rulers. Later, Chief Minister of the state of West Bengal in independent India, late Shri Bidhan Chandra Roy, on 1950s resurrected the plan.
After sanctioned by then Union Rail Minister of India, Smt. Mamata Banerjee (now, Chief Minister of West Bengal) in 2009 and inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi last week, the stretch between Esplanade station and Howrah Maidan station connected by the first ever under-river metro rail tunnel of India, finally was opened for public on Friday, 15 March 2024, after tireless efforts from thousands of engineers, laborers, construction workers and others involved in this historic project. So, it was our turn on behalf of the West Bengal Local Guides to be among few of the lucky passengers to avail this service on its Day 1 itself, to experience this engineering marvel that overcame the challenge of establishing metro rail connectivity several meters under a grand river like Ganga (Hooghly) through a pair of underwater tunnels, that reduced the distance between the cities by at least 45 minutes.
The meetup began at the Esplanade station near Dharmatala, which also serves as the junction station between the existing North-South route and the fresh East-West route of metro rail systems in Kolkata. WBLG moderator and Accessibility Champion @PritishB joined me at this station, traveling from Dumdum metro station through the North-South metro line. He entered the subway connecting the two routes, and reached the new Esplanade station on the East-West route.
As we explored the fresh metro station compound built atop the Curzon Park, named after the infamous, former Viceroy of British India, Lord Curzon, we were keen to note the accessibility facilities here in this new route of the Kolkata metro network. We were happy to see that the authorities have worked with special care in this segment, as there was a parking reserved specifically for the physically disabled persons, close to an inclined ramp connecting the parking space with the metro station for wheelchair access. On entering the station, there were 8 lifts available, reserved for the Divyang (persons with disability) and senior citizens, to travel beneath the surface to the mezzanine floor to avail the ticket counter facilities, which was available in both in-person mode with Metro Rail staffs handing the tickets, as well as through automated ticket vending machines. The passengers could either pay cash to get paper tickets with QR code embedded on them, or else smart card holders from the existing North-South route were able to use the same smart cards in this new route too. Hopefully, this ticketing service will be upgraded to smartphone app-based ticketing, with paperless tickets to promote sustainability of the environment, as well as UPI (Unified Payments Interface) should be available for purchasing tickets to promote the cashless payments initiative of the Govt. of India. After scanning the QR codes on the micro-camera embedded on the security gates, the passengers were allowed to move to the platform below. Here also, lifts were available for the Divyang and senior citizens to reach the platform without any hassle for escalators or staircases. There were toilets specifically designated for the physically disabled persons. Even inside the metro rakes, we spotted couple of accessible slots in every compartment to allow wheelchair access. Also, there were four sections of seating per bogie strictly reserved for the senior citizens and Divyang persons, in line with similar practice followed in the existing North-South route.
The most amazing part about Kolkata and its public transport system is its affordability. Even in 2024, one can travel great distances at a low fare of just ₹5 ($0.06). The same feature has been implemented in the newly opened East-West metro segment connecting Kolkata and Howrah, making it the most affordable ride in this route when compared against bus, auto or cab fares here. Here’s the fare chart for the East-West metro line from Esplanade station:-
We purchased tickets to the terminal Howrah Maidan station, as the excitement was building inside our hearts as we were just a few minutes away from having the much-anticipated metro rail ride under the majestic Ganga river in our own city. What was considered as a distant dream in our childhood in a third-world country, the massive rate of development and technological growth in India have made our dreams come true finally. Before setting our foot atop the train, we explored the station that has been covered with some beautiful murals depicting the cultural richness and diversity of Bengal.
As we boarded the train, the ambience that we found happened to be extraordinary. It was the inaugural day, hence hundreds of curious passengers were there inside the train, everyone ready with their mobile cameras pointed towards the glass windows, excited for their first travel under the Ganga river. There were a number of vloggers and YouTubers present in the train, shooting for their respective channels for contents on this very special day in the history of Kolkata and Howrah. The train ride seemed to be very smooth and silent, compared to the rides in the usual North-South route. It took less than 2 minutes to reach the Mahakaran station, where the train stopped for 15 seconds, before continuing its run towards Howrah station across the river. As we all held our breathes in excitement, as soon as 1 minutes and 30 seconds have passed, the train entered a patch illuminated by vibrant blue light on both sides of the train as the crowd erupted in joy, with many chanting slogans in Bengali and Sanskrit languages like ‘Namami Gange’, ‘Jai Shree Ram’, ‘Joy Ma Durga’, and some passengers reading Hindu religious textures as the Ganga Stotram to acknowledge their devotion to the holy river Ganga, which has been the lifeline for a large part of India. It was the underwater metro rail tunnel that was lit with blue lights by the authorities to indicate the exact 520-metre long stretch of the metro rail line that runs at a depth of 32 meters below the deepest point of the riverbed. There was no feeling for pressure differences at such a depth below the surface of earth, as we smoothly crossed the underwater part in just 28 seconds, and reached the Howrah metro station, which is now the deepest metro station of the country at a depth of 33 meters from the surface.
After a brief stop of 15 seconds for de-boarding and on-boarding of passengers at Howrah station, the train took 2 more minutes to reach Howrah Maidan, which is the final station in this line. We de-boarded at this station to have a first-look of this latest station opened for public on its first day. Like Esplanade, this station also was covered with beautiful murals on this wall. The station complex looked busy, with hundreds of passengers waiting in multiple queues in front of the ticket counter, to be able to experience a metro ride on this special occasion. Outside the station, we spotted multiple wheelchair-accessible parking spaces, elevated ramps and elevators to support the physically disabled and senior citizens. This station is located near the Bangabasi Cinema Hall at Howrah Maidan.
From Howrah Maidan station, we boarded a return train to reach the Howrah metro station. As mentioned earlier, it is currently the deepest metro station of India at a depth of 33 meters below surface. It bears high significance for being the link between the Howrah railway station and the metro rail network of Kolkata and Howrah. The Howrah railway station, which is the largest and busiest railway station in the country, is also considered as the gateway of eastern and north-eastern India. The newly built metro station here is located in the middle of the old complex of Howrah railway station consisting of platforms 1-15, and the new complex of this station consisting of platforms 16-23. This metro station is directly linked to the platforms of the railway station complex now, making the lives of daily passengers and railway travelers easy as one can directly avail the metro rail from any part of Kolkata and reach this railway station for local train or long-distance train journeys or goods movements and vice versa.
After exploring the Howrah metro station, it was time to return to Kolkata, once again traveling under the Ganga river. We reached the Mahakaran metro station, located close to Mahakaran (Writer’s Building), which is a historic British building in central Kolkata that once used to serve as the principle administrative building of the British Government of Bengal Presidency, and therefore the Government of West Bengal in independent India. This metro station is in close proximity to the central business district of Kolkata with many state government and central government offices located near this station around the Dalhousie Square (BBD Bag). Earlier, the employees at these offices and local businessmen had to walk for about a kilometer, or get into a bus to reach Central station or the Esplanade station of the North-South route, but now this Maharakan station at East-West metro line would be closer, hence handy for their daily travels.
As we reached at the conclusion of our meetup for exploring India’s first underwater metro rail service, and accessibility walk at the inaugural day of the East-West metro rail facility connecting cities Kolkata with Howrah over the Ganga river, it was time to satisfy our taste-buds and the stomach. So, we reached the Mission Dhaba hotel, in walking distance from the Mahakaran metro station on the East-West route and close to the Central metro station on the North-South route. We had our hunger tamed with some low-cost, but savory vegetarian food items such as Masala Kulcha, Veg Fried Rice, Palak Paneer, Babycorn Chilli.
It was a wonderful feeling, riding in this new route of Kolkata metro transit system on a historic day for the city, comprising of crucial stations in the central business district such as Esplanade, Mahakaran (Writer’s Building), Howrah Station (connecting Eastern Railways, South-Eastern Railways) and Howrah Maidan. This was indeed a lifetime experience that I would also be able to cherish in future. I must thank Local Guide @PritishB for joining me in this quest, on a busy working day afternoon, and would like to invite Local Guides from different parts of the state of West Bengal to come out, and attend/host similar Local Guiding events in-person in greater numbers.
